1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to fishing with bait, such as live bait (minnows, shrimp, small fish), or dead bait or manufactured or synthetic. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus that alerts a fisherman that his or her hook is bare, no longer baited.
2. General Background of the Invention
Fisherman often attempt to lure fish to a hook using a bait article that can be either live bait or dead bait. Bait is understood to mean anything that can be placed on a hook to attract a fish. Examples of live bait include minnows, shrimp, small fish, worms, insects or the like. Examples of dead bait include frozen or cooled items such as shrimp, fish, and insects as examples. The website of Bass Pro Shops (www.basspro.com) gives examples of many baits. Some bait articles can be attached to the hook which are neither live nor fresh/frozen but are plastic or other synthetic material, sometimes referred to as trailers. Bass Pro Shops also sells preserved baits that could be attached to a hook such as, for example eggs, worms, dough, and the like.
One of the problems facing a fisherman is the loss of a bait article while fishing. These bait articles can become dislodged from the hook that supports them because of a number of different reasons. In some situations, a smaller fish simply removes the bait from the hook without becoming impaled. Sometimes a fish will strike, remove the bait, and not be impaled by the hook. In some situations, tide flow slowly pulls at the bait until it becomes disconnected from the hook. In some situations, the bait can be removed from the hook because of underwater structure such as grass, sticks, limbs, gravel and the like. Sometimes bait will fall off the hook when the angler makes his cast.
If the fisherman has some doubt whether or not the bait is still connected to the hook, he or she typically has only one option, namely reeling in the hook and checking it out.
If the bait is still on the hook, it was needlessly removed from the fishing area, reducing the chances of catching a fish. If the hook was bare, a fisherman must wonder how long it was bare and are the fish still in the vicinity or did they move on because there was no more bait to entice them. There remains a need for a device to let an angler know immediately when there is no longer any bait on the hook. Modern fishing can be boiled down to a time management endeavor. Since one cannot fish 24 hours a day, seven days a week, an angler must, in the limited time available for him, 1) find a location where the fish are, 2) be at that location when they are ready to feed, 3) present to the fish a bait they feel like eating and 4) keep a bait in the feeding area as much as possible during their active feeding times. There is only a certain amount of time during the day when at a given location, there will be actively feeding fish. If an angler is lucky enough to be at the right spot, at the right time, with the right bait on the hook, the odds of a successful fishing trip are in his favor, and are increased the greater the time a baited hook is in the water.
Reeling the line in to check for a baited hook decreases efficiency. Repeatedly casting the bait can stun or kill it, making it less attractive to the fish.
None of the previous art answers one of the most basic questions of bait fishing: Is there still bait on the hook? The key to solving the problem and increasing an angler's efficiency and enjoyment, is to be able to know when a hook no longer has bait on it without having to remove it from the strike area.
The following patent documents are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,461,114 5,351,432 5,615,512 5,937,566 5,974,721 6,079,144 6,796,077;    U.K. Patent No. GB 2245467.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,974,721 discloses a light emitting fishing float that is activated when a fish contacts the hook.    U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,144 discloses a motion-actuated light with a fish hook and float that flashes when contact is made with spaced conductive areas that form a circuit.    U.S. Pat. No. 6,796,077 discloses a lighted lure with a conductive weed guard that turns off when a fish is hooked.    U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,446 is directed to fish bite by pressure sensor.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,930 is a remote activity sensing system.    U.S. Pat. No. 6,671,994 discloses a fish strike indicator.    U.S. Pat. No. 6,138,398 discloses a fish strike indicator.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,898,372 discloses a lighted fishing float with a motion detector.